Truth is, we don’t. We’ve had incredible highs and unimaginable lows. We aren’t a love story found in a book. We are real, raw, imperfect people who choose to fight through the lows and cherish the highs.

You are a truly incredible human being… and some how, some way, you became mine.

I knew immediately you would be a wonderful father.

Which by the way was on my “list.” You know, that list in your mind of all the check boxes that must be marked before you consider sharing your life and soul with another. You checked them all.

But honestly… you’re not the father I thought you would be.

You are something far greater.

When we found out we were expecting you were so excited. I’ll never forget that day you found out you were becoming a dad. It was your birthday! It was also that very moment that you became a Dad. You stepped right up to the plate for a journey you were completely unaware of.

You stood by my side when I lost all hope that we would actually be able to hold our precious babies. We were told that our pregnancy was one of the most high-risk pregnancies there was. Monochorionic Monoamniotic twins. I’ll never forget us leaving our 16-week appointment, and me breaking down. I gave up all hope. But there you were, holding me up with your love. I know you were hurting too, but you put that aside to comfort and console me.

You sacrificed so much for our family before our babies were even born. You moved out of our dream home in our dream neighborhood to stay with my parents. While I was admitted to the hospital at just 24 weeks. You spent 58 of those 60 nights in that cold hospital room right by my side. You did it for our babies, and I know you would do it again.

Luckily for us, our girls made it. Born prematurely weighing only 2.7 and 2.14 lbs, they spent 55 and 80 days in the NICU. And every single one of those days you were right there. You never left their side. You never left my side.

You were an incredible father, and that was obvious to anyone who saw the way you looked at your girls.

Things have changes since then though. You and I were told that our sweet Ashlyn would need lots of extra attention and care. We were told our sweet baby had several medical conditions that would impact her daily life, for the rest of her life.

You are a special needs father, and you’ve faced and embraced this new role with strength and grace.

You were presented with something many families couldn’t begin to understand or comprehend. Not only did you step up to the plate. You have shown me that you are even more incredible than I already knew you were. When we have bad days, you are my back bone, my strength. You are the provider, the lover, the comedian, and the rock star our family needs. You’ve always been an incredible man, but you as a father… you are something truly special.

Our daughters are going grow up with the highest expectations of what a man should be, and how a woman should be treated.

They are going to grow up knowing that their Daddy sacrificed so much and would do anything in his power to provide, support and love them.

You aren’t the father I thought you would be. You are something far greater.

Thank you for being everything we need, and more than I could have ever imagined.

About Kelli Gruen

Kelli is a passionate, hard-working, creative soul. She runs her own freelance graphic design business, while working from home and raising her two sweet identical twin girls.... plus one little man on the way! Over the last two years Kelli has become an advocate for her daughter, who was born with two rare disorders. She is the wife to an equally hard-working, kind and loving gentleman, Jeremy. Kelli and her family arrived in Austin in 2015, by way San Diego, CA. They enjoy exploring this beautiful city, and spending time with family and friends. You can follow her at www.babygruens.wordpress.com.

2 Responses to You’re Not The Dad I Thought You’d Be

Such a great homage to your husband! A lot of people don’t see the work and change that dads can put into their lives for their children! This is beautiful and think a lot of women feel this way toward their significant other and you just wrote it all down and got it out there in a way some women haven’t been able to! Thanks for sharing!